eWaivers: Say Goodbye to Paperwork – Going Digital is a Dream
Managing waivers that pertain to owning, showing or just being around horses – just got a whole lot easier, thanks to Strider, a company whose mission it is to connect riders and organizers throughout the equestrian industry. Recently, The Tech Equestrian had the chance to speak with Heather Briggs, Chief Technology Officer at Strider about their new eWaiver service. We discovered not only how timely and efficient this new offering is but also how Heather’s professional background compliments Strider’s strategic vision for expanded tech adoption in the horse industry.
Georgina Bloomberg riding her dreamy horse Manhattan at the 2020 Winter Equestrian Festival in Wellington, Florida. pc: The Tech Equestrian
“As we are navigating the current environment, we must innovate new ways to get to a sense of normal and our service helps deliver that.”
Mobile-Friendly and Fast
As we know, when it comes to being around horses – there is little (if not any) time you have to sit in front of a laptop to read, sign, and store a document – your cell phone becomes the device that can do it all. That becomes even more important if you ride horses for a living, like Freddie Vasquez Equestrian. Strider realized this and came up with the eWaiver subscription service to take the stress and inconvenience of signing waivers by digitizing the process. From barn liability to horse show waivers, and everything in between, eWaiver collects a legally binding signature by digitally storing the waivers for easy access and ability to send to an insurance company, if the need should arise.
“The rider knows what they are signing, and both parties receive a soft copy after signature,” said Heather. “At the Mars Great Meadow International this past summer the venue organizers were able to use Strider eWaivers to collect liability & COVID waivers for everyone at the venue. Many organizers fret that they will miss waivers from a large number of people, our solution ends the worry and makes signature collection easy,” stated Heather.
sample release
Fits with Your Needs
As with most subscription services tiered pricing options make it easy to select a plan based on your needs. Strider’s eWaiver service follows that model with three plan options: Essentials (up to 100 signatures a month); Premium (up to 500 signatures a month) and Platinum (up to 1,000 signatures a month).
“For show organizers and larger stables, the Premium and Platinum plans are ideal because they give you the flexibility of managing your data – with simple organizing via auto populated spreadsheets,” shared Heather. The Platinum plan is also is a great option to enable communications in case of an emergency – it facilitates timely contact with every signer.
“Organizers are also finding out they can now easily capture the contact details for everyone who was at a horse show from farriers to vendors and more.”
Data – the Great Optimizer
“It is exciting to see the power of data becoming fully tapped in the equestrian marketplace,” Heather said. “All aspects of the horse industry need to view riders as customers and to enhance their experience by leveraging data.”
As she explained, Strider is geared to helping equestrians create opportunity and we take data optimizing seriously – “We want you to be seen. The industry is getting there,” said Heather in regard to technology adoption. “Horse shows are not only competing on timing, location and prize money – but also how seamlessly shows can incorporate a digital experience. Managing the vasts amounts of data thoughtfully is the last remaining hurdle,” said Heather.
Spanning the Horse World
Heather has held multiple senior leadership positions across the equestrian industry. She served as Chief d'Equipe of both the US & Italian Combined Driving Teams as well as a Board Member and then Director of the renown CSI 4* Upperville Colt & Horse Show - the longest running horse show in America. As a combined driving course designer, Heather holds both Fédération Equestre Internationale 2* and United States Equestrian Federation “R” license ratings. She currently has horses competing in Europe at the International level in Combined Driving, Dressage, and Jumpers.
What’s Happening at Strider
Strider’s technology road map extends 18 months in the future and includes things like the Strider App. “The production schedule for end of Q3 was very ambitious with the launch of the eWaiver service and the integration the USEF API into our platform,” said Heather. “For our members, this is a big win as their USEF rider and horse details can be pulled in and populated into their Strider profiles.” Additional improvements are fit into the development schedule based on suggestions from Strider members. Heather loves that “Strider has an extraordinarily stable and robust technology stack which affords Strider the ability to pivot and capitalize on great ideas.”
About Strider: From enabling riders to discover and book the perfect opportunity, to helping equestrians across the industry grow and run their businesses, STRIDER fosters connections to top tier experiences. Visit STRIDER to learn more about the suite of software products and services available.